Woman who allegedly shot her husband refused breath analysis test

By Scott HarperSouth Strand News

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Sonia Gay Smith, the woman accused of shooting and killing her husband inside their home in the Pleasant Hill area Aug. 8, refused to take a breath analyzer test the night of the incident, according to information contained in a deputy’s report.

The report also reveals the couple was not alone in the home when deputies arrived on the scene.

Sonia Smith, 58, remains in jail as she awaits a bond hearing in General Sessions Court.

The report states Sonia Smith called 911 and told the dispatcher “she just shot her husband and he needed an ambulance.”

When the first deputy arrived on the scene, he looked through a glass door and saw Sonia Smith walking around the house. He attempted to open the door but it was locked.

A second officer arrived and was able to get inside the house through an unlocked side door.

The reporting deputy states he went inside and saw Mr. Smith “face down on the floor near the back door.”

He wrote Mr. Smith “appeared to be shot in the head or face area based on the pool of blood.”

Georgetown County Coroner Kenny Johnson later confirmed Mr. Smith had been shot once in the face.

There were two women inside the house, according to the report. Along with Sonia Smith was a woman she identified as her mother-in-law.

Johnson said Sonia Smith’s mother-in-law was in another room of the house when the shooting took place.

Sonia Smith was sitting on the floor about two feet from her husband’s body, the report states. The handgun was located on the kitchen counter.

Before being taken inside the jail, Smith was offered a Breathalyzer test “due to the strong amount of alcohol that could be smelled on her,” the report states, adding “Ms. Smith declined the Breathalyzer examination and was escorted into the Detention Center.”

Johnson said more autopsy testing is taking place to try to determine how close Mr. Smith was to the gun when it was fired. Results of those tests are still pending.

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